OCLC API "Python" Format like JSON?

[tomhohenstein]

From Tim - moved here from learn-git

I have been successful in running an OCLC API via python to generate a list of ISSN’s associated with a list of inputted ISSNs.
This has been very useful, and replaces a tool that used to be available through SFX.

I was able to do this be taking the data in a .csv format, and manipulating that data by appending it to Python lists, all of which is close to what I would have done with PHP arrays.

But I GOT CURIOUS over another format the OCLC offers called “python”. This looks a lot like the json format you are using.

So here’s my problem. I can REPRODUCE a return for a single issn api request as follows by copying and pasting the return into a python script and calling it “a”:

a={
'stat':'ok',
'group':[{
'rel':'this',
'list':[{
'issn':'0193-5615',
'form':'JB'},
{
'issn':'1559-9167',
'form':'JB'},
{
'issn':'1548-1409',
'form':'JD'},
{
'issn':'1937-4402',
'form':'JD'}]}]}

I can then parse this in a variety of ways:

For example:

print(((a['group'][0])['list'][3])['issn'])

will render 1937-4402

or a more complicated process:

b=(a['group'][0])
c=(b['list'])
l=len(c)

for i in range(l):
print(c['issn'])

will render a list of all 4 of the ISSN’s in the above output.

My problem is that I cannot for the life of me figure out how to actually generate the above (a) return as a single value using Python. This would be essential in making it possible form e to iterate through a list of inputted ISSN’s as I can do now using the OCLC .csv format.

The best I can do is get Python to write this out by doing the following:

url='http://xissn.worldcat.org/webservices/xid/issn/2161-9417?method=getForms&format=python'

x = urllib.request.urlopen(url)
print(x)

for t in x:
t1 = str( t, encoding='utf8' )
print(t1)

This writes the same result out in the results, but NOT as a single parsable value.
Anything I do to compile this print into single array of any sort gets me an error when I try to parse by searching on a key value, by insisting that key values must be in an integer form.

I keep thinking that there is something really obvious that I am missing here.

Tim